Throwback: Happy 59th Birthday, Chris Robinson!

2025 is almost over. Let’s work towards making 2026 a much calmer and much better year for all of us. 

But in the meantime, December is a busy month for music birthdays, y’all. 

• The Doors‘ John Densmore celebrated his 81st birthday on December 1
• The legendary Lou Rawls was born 92 years ago on December 1
• The Doors‘ John Densmore celebrated his 81st birthday on December 1
• The legendary Lou Rawls was born 92 years ago on December 1
• Def Leppard bassist Rick Savage celebrates his 65th — yes, y’all, 65th! — birthday on December 2
• Nelly Furtado celebrated her 47th birthday on December 2
• Montell Jordan celebrated his 57th birthday on December 3
• Ozzy Osbourne, the “Prince of Darkness” and “Godfather of Metal,” was born 77 years ago on December 3
• One of the greatest and most successful emcees both commercially and critically to ever do it, Jay-Z celebrated his 56th birthday on December 4
• The pioneering and legendary Little Richard was born 93 years ago on December 5
• R.E.M. co-founder and lead guitarist Peter Buck celebrates his 69th birthday on December 6
• R&B, soul legend and Maze founder Frankie Beverly was born 79 years ago on December 6
• The Doors‘ Jim Morrison was born 82 years ago on December 8
• The fearlessly uncompromising Sinead O’Connor was born 59 years ago on December 8 
• Yeah Yeah Yeahs‘ co-founder and guitarist Nick Zinner celebrated his 51st birthday on December 8
• Dinosaur Jr. creative mastermind and grunge pioneer J. Mascis celebrated his 60th — yes, 60th! — birthday on December 9
• The legendary Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton was born 99 years ago on December 11
• One of the greatest, most influential jazz pianists of the 20th century, McCoy Tyner was born 87 years on December 11
• Motley Crüe‘s Nikki Sixx celebrated his 67th birthday on December 11
• The immensely talented Sheila E celebrated her 68th birthday on December 12
• The Fixx’s frontman Cy Curnin celebrated his 68th birthday on December 12
• Grammy Award-winning multi-instrumentalist, arranger, producer and smooth jazz pioneer  Grover Washington, Jr. was born 82 years ago on December 12
• Yasiin Bey, one of the greatest living emcees celebrated his 52nd birthday on December 12
• The incomparable, elegant and absolutely legendary Ms. Dionne Warwick celebrated her 85th — yes, y’all, 85th! — birthday on December 12 
• Morris Day and The Time’s Morris Day celebrated his 68th birthday on December 13
• Television‘s Tom Verlaine, one of the most influential and important guitarists of the past 50 years was born on this day 76 years ago on December 13
• The Clash‘s Paul Simonon celebrated his 70th birthday — yes, 70th y’all — on December 15
• Eddie Palmieri, the great salsa composer and pianist was born 89 years ago on December 15
• ZZ Top frontman, guitarist and co-founder Billy Gibbons celebrated his 76th birthday on December 16
• R.E.M co-founder, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Mike Mills celebrated his 67th birthday on December 17
• The co-founder of the legendary Temptations, Eddie Kendricks was born 86 years ago on December 17
• DMX, one of the most electric, captivating emcees to ever spit bars on a record was born 55 years ago on December 18
• The Rolling Stones‘ legendary guitarist Keith Richards celebrated his 82nd birthday on December 18
• The legendary Édith Piaf was born 110 years ago on December 19
• Earth, Wind & Fire’s Maurice White was born 84 years ago on December 19

The Black Crowes‘ and Chris Robinson Brotherhood (CRB)‘s Chris Robinson celebrates his 59th birthday today. Robinson is one of the most soulful white guys on the face of the earth — and if you don’t believe me, check out The Black Crowes cover of The Temptations‘ “Papa Was a Rolling Stone

____

The Joy of Violent Movement is a completely independent and completely D.I.Y. media outlet. Over the course of this site’s 15+ year history, I’ve used my fiercely independent stance to cover music with an eclectic and global perspective that a lot of other publications just don’t have — and will likely never have. 

To that end, I could use your support to continue to keep bringing you my unique global perspective on music. There are a number of ways that you can support this work. 

I’ve been told that some people would prefer to make a one-time donation because it’s easy and less of an obligation. So, if you’re able to make a one-time donation, there’s a donation box below.

Anything you can give is very much appreciated. It can and does make a real difference, y’all. 

I know that a lot of folks are struggling to make ends meet in an uncertain and tumultuous economic climate. So there are other, non-financial ways in which you can support this work. 

You can follow me on the following social platforms:

X/Twitter: @yankee32879 and @joyofviolent 

Instagram: @william_ruben_helms

Threads: @william_ruben_helms

Bluesky: @williamrubenhelms.bsky.social

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheJoyofViolentMovement

As always, if there are posts that you dig, share them with your friends. The more eyeballs on my work, the better.